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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24533014">How to Make Friends and Influence Demons</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prodigal_Sunlight/pseuds/Prodigal_Sunlight'>Prodigal_Sunlight</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sanders Sides (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Demons, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Moceit - Freeform, Pre-Relationship, Slow Burn, Snakes, but the guy is some cute dude who wants friends, selling your soul to get a squad, slowburn, when you show up for a summoning</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 10:02:15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,601</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24533014</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prodigal_Sunlight/pseuds/Prodigal_Sunlight</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Patton stood up, dusting off his hands and checking the book, still open on the counter. There were a couple steps he’d had to tweak. Just little things, like a circle of scorched tallow (he didn’t know what that was) or the bones of a martyr (he did not have any and did not want to.) But he’d baked enough to know how to make recipe substitutions, so he figured he could do something similar with a demon summoning.</p><p> </p><p>Patton M. Sanders is as sweet as a cupcake and gentle as a kitten. So why on earth would he possibly summon a demon? That's exactly what Janus wonders when he appears in dinky apartment surrounded by scented candles and offered a piece of homemade cake. Surely he doesn't think selling his soul to a demon is going to make him friends.</p><p>Right?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Deceit | Janus Sanders/Morality | Patton Sanders, Morality | Patton Sanders &amp; Thomas Sanders</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>175</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It had taken a whole weekend, but the preparations were at last done, and Patton was prepared to summon a demon.</p><p>Patton hummed cheerfully as he set out the last unlit candle around the edges of the chalk summoning circle. He had a bad habit of impulse buying candles that smelled good or had cute names, so it was nice to finally have a use for all of them. The library book didn’t say the candles needed to be unscented, so he figured Butterscotch Kitten Morning wouldn’t be a problem.</p><p>He stood up, dusting off his hands and checking the book, still open on the counter. There were a couple steps he’d had to tweak. Just little things, like a circle of scorched tallow (he didn’t know what that was) or the bones of a martyr (he did not have any and did not want to.) But he’d baked enough to know how to make recipe substitutions, so he figured he could do something similar with a demon summoning.</p><p>Of course, he hadn’t just followed the book. He had a pot of coffee brewing, and a vanilla allergy-friendly cake cooling on the rack. Demonic or not, Patton figured that any guests needed a warm welcome. He was a bit worried that he didn’t have any tea to offer if the demon didn’t like coffee, but he’d have to make do without.</p><p>While he considered whether to add sprinkles to the cake now or to let the demon add their own sprinkles, his phone began to ring. Patton pushed his bangs out of his face, grabbing his phone out of his pocket and answering with a cheery, “Hello hello! Patton Sanders household, Patton speaking! Can I help you out there?”</p><p>“Hey Pat! It’s Thomas,” came the cheery response. Patton quickly pulled out a kitchen chair, sitting down with a smile to listen. “I wanted to call in to see how you’re doing!”</p><p>“Thomas! I’m doing great,” Patton said, glancing around the messy apartment. “Just so peachy! But what about you? How’ve you been kiddo?”</p><p>“Great! This campus is incredible, and I’ve made so many new friends. There’s these students named Jamaal and Talyn, and they’ve been showing me all the best places to hang out. I love it here!” Thomas said.</p><p>Patton’s heart sank a little. In less than three weeks, Thomas had made two new friends. Patton hadn’t made one single friend since he and Thomas had gotten an apartment, and that record hadn’t changed when Thomas left for school. He felt jealous, and he felt guilty for feeling jealous. He should be happy for his baby brother. “Well I’m real glad you’ve been settling in alright. Have you been eating well? Taking good care of yourself?”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, I’ve been uh, all up on the home cooking and stuff! Totally not just getting pizza every week,” Thomas said sheepishly. “I’ll make good food once I’m caught up on homework and I get around to unpacking!”</p><p>“Promise?” Patton said, putting a hand on his hip and pouting. “Don’t make me march right on down there to cook and clean for you, mister!”</p><p>Thomas laughed, and hearing him so happy eased Patton’s worries a bit. “Alright, alright! I’ll take care of myself, I promise. So how have you been?”</p><p>“Well, I—“</p><p>There was the sound of someone shouting on the other end, and Thomas cut him off. “Oops, that’s Talyn! I forgot we had class. Sorry Pat, I’ve got to go! Catch up with you later!” Thomas hung up, and the phone went quiet.</p><p>Patton sighed, bowing his head. “Buh-bye Thomas,” he said, even though the call had already ended. “Have fun at class. Love you.” He set the phone down on the table and leaned back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling.</p><p>He’d basically raised Thomas for the last few years. Between that and working two jobs, he’d been too busy to make friends or relax. Now, Thomas didn’t need him. That was bittersweet in and of itself, but it also meant that Patton had time to himself, and no one to share it with. After spending so many years worried about himself and his brother, Patton wasn’t even sure he knew how to make friends anymore. He tried, sure, but whenever he tried to greet someone he ended up tongue-tied and anxious.</p><p>Now that Thomas was all grown up, Patton was alone.</p><p>He shot off a quick text to Thomas, just a brief “Good luck!!!” with a string of heart emojis that looked far more cheerful that Patton felt. It’d probably be a few hours, or maybe all day before Thomas texted back. He was busy with college. He had a bright future. It wasn’t fair to hold him back.</p><p>Patton shook his head as if he could shake the bad thoughts right out. Thomas wasn’t the only one who was going to have an exciting new future. He put his phone away and stood up, stepping back into the kitchen proper.</p><p>He grabbed the box of matches he’d left out on the counter, kneeling down and striking a match. Slowly, he lit each of the colorful scented candles. They were all bright, and a few had cute patterns like flowers or puppy faces colored into the wax. The probably weren’t the right kind of candles for demon summoning, but they sure did smell nice. Once he’d lit the thirteenth and final candle, Patton blew out the match. He tossed it in the sink and washed the tiny smudges of ash that had fallen on his fingers.</p><p>Next, he picked up the library book in his left hand, trying to orient himself at the bottom of the circle, just outside the chalk and candles. Patton checked the instructions again. “Oh! A glass bowl, I almost forgot.”</p><p>He opened his cupboards and grabbed a tupperware bowl. It was transparent, so it was probably close enough, right? Figuring it’d do well enough, Patton leaned over to set it inside the chalk summoning circle, roughly in the middle.</p><p>Patton glanced at the library book again. “Okay, that’s pretty much everything! Looks close enough,” he said, feeling rather satisfied. Now the less fun part. He lifted his right hand to his mouth, biting down on the tip of his thumb. He flinched, but he tightened his grip until his skin just barely broke. He’d though this would be less scary than a knife, but maybe that wouldn’t have hurt as much. He leaned over, shaking his thumb until a few drops of blood fell from the tiny cut, into the tupperware bowl.</p><p>While he started reading the chant written in the book, he fumbled to wrap a spongebob bandaid around his thumb. “Okay… um, Bestias inferni, maledictus erit nomen tuum,” he read aloud. Suddenly, the kitchen lights flickered, then went out. Only the candles lit the room. A power outage?</p><p>By the candlelight, he could still make out the pages of the library book well enough to read. “Cadit regnum tuum. Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in terris inferos.” The ground beneath Patton’s feet seemed to shake. The flames of the candles burned unnaturally bright, the color of their glow shifting from a fiery red to an unnatural, sickly yellow. Patton tried to keep his footing, tightening his grip on the book.</p><p>Patton swallowed the bile in his throat. “D–da hodie in servum vilem!” He said, his voice raising to a shout. The lines of chalk began to glow, shining with a golden light that pooled on the ground like a puddle of spilled water. As if a window had been thrown open, wind whipped through the tiny kitchen apartment.</p><p>“Et peccatis vestris daturum nobis, ut nos accipere debitum tuum,” Patton stammered, trying to rush through the last few lines. “Referte ad me, et libera me ad malum tentationis in unum.” The golden light burst outward, blindingly bright, so powerful Patton’s eyes burned even when he squeezed them shut. “Quia tuum est regnum et potestas et gloria in saecula… saeculorum!”</p><p>There was a burst of force, knocking the library book from Patton’s hands and knocking him to the ground. The intense light began to fade, and Patton sat up, rubbing his head with a whimper. “Ow…” His eyes slowly began to adjust, taking in his dim kitchen, the candles still faintly glowing. Had it not worked? But as his eyes finally cleared up, he could see a tall figure standing in the circle, right behind the tupperware bowl.</p><p>The figure was a tall, beautiful man, dressed in all black except for the simple yellow dress shirt beneath his cloak and the matching yellow band around his bowler hat. A pair of curled black horns sat on either side of his head just below the hat, framing his pale face. One cheek was marred in golden scales that shimmered in the candlelight. The man glanced about the kitchen with an unreadable poker face, any expressions hidden, but the sense of power and confidence utterly overwhelming.</p><p>“You,” the man said, looking down at Patton with a cold appraising stare. “Are you the mortal who summoned me to this place?” he asked, a faint hiss in his tone.</p><p>Patton quickly got to his feet, wiping his hands off on his hands. “Ah, sorry, didn’t mean to fall over! Yep, I’m Patton!” he said, trying to hide his mix of awe and terror. He hurried over to the cooling rack and got down the cake, slicing it into even portions. He set a hefty slice on a plate and grabbed a fork, putting them in the demon’s hands. “Eat as much as you like! It’s too much cake for two people anyway,” he encouraged, grabbing a slice for himself too.”</p><p>The demon opened his mouth to speak, but then the electric kettle began to beep, so Patton rushed over there. He poured the kettle into the two mugs he’d set out, looking over his shoulder at the demon. “Do you want sugar and cream in your coffee?” he asked, pouring a generous helping of sugar in his own mug.</p><p>The demon narrowed his eyes. “Why did you summon me here?” he said, taking a step towards Patton. “You do know what I am, don’t you?”</p><p>“Of course!” Patton said, setting down his mug. “But it seems rude to get right into that sort of thing. I thought we could have introductions and small talk over coffee! But if coffee isn’t your cup of tea—“</p><p>“No, give it here. No sugar,” the demon said quickly. Patton handed over the mug, then started blowing on his own coffee to cool it down. The demon didn’t wait, emptying the steaming hot mug in a few quick gulps. “Let’s get to business, mortal. I’m rather pressed for time.”</p><p>Patton grinned. “Pressed for time? Well don’t be bitter, it’d be better latte than never!”</p><p>The demon raised an eyebrow, a sly smile crossing his features. “Spill the beans. If you want my help, you must first ask for it.”</p><p>Patton set his mug down, hurrying over to pick up his library book. A few of the edges were burnt and crispy, but the cover and pages were in tact. Still, that would probably be a fine. He quickly opened the book back up to the page on demonic contracts. “Okay! So, it says when making a contract with a demon, you have to start by exchanging names! We can use them to call on each other so neither of us can just run out on the deal. I already told you I’m Patton. What can I call you?” he asked brightly.</p><p>The demon paused for a moment, then smirked. “You may call me Deceit,” he said.</p><p>“Is that your name?” Patton said curiously. “I thought demons had big fancy biblical names and stuff. Are you really called Deceit?”</p><p>“It is my professional title. It will allow you to call upon me, while still affording me a level of… privacy,” the demon said, folding his arms. “Does that suffice?”</p><p>Patton shrugged. “I mean, if it still works the same way, I can call you that! Or Dee, oh, that’d be cute! Can I call you Dee?” he asked brightly.</p><p>Deceit tilted his head to the side, as if considering Patton carefully. “You know, most people willing to summon servants of hell aren’t so cheerful and warm.” Amusement shone in his eyes. “So what sort of nasty secrets are you hiding?”</p><p>Patton frowned, not sure if he should be hurt of not by the question. “I don’t have evil secrets. I like to be honest with people! Besides, you didn’t answer my question,” he argued.</p><p>Deceit narrowed his eyes, his bemusement turning irritated. “No. I am not a little animal to be given a silly nickname. I will not be called ‘Dee.’”</p><p>“Awww,” Patton said, a bit disappointed. Well, maybe he could come up with a nickname Deceit would like? “Okay, well, the book says after names are traded, I should ask you to make an offer! So uh… make an offer please!”</p><p>The demon’s self-satisfied smirk returned, and he bent over so he and Patton could be eye-to-eye. “I can give you anything you desire. I can make you the most beautiful, most famous man in the world. You could be disgustingly wealthy, unspeakably powerful. I can give the reigns to any government of any nation, I can give you the power to fell armies, and I can give you enough gold to buy your own castle. Anything you wish, I can speak into existence. I can make you… a god.”</p><p>“No thanks! I don’t need that stuff,” Patton said, offering Deceit a friendly smile. “Okay, so, it says that the most common payments for demons are your soul, or the soul of your firstborn kid! I don’t think it’d be fair to sell somebody else’s soul, and I’m gay anyway, so the firstborn thing is off the table. So, my soul then?”</p><p>Deceit cocked his head to the side, eyeing Patton with fascination. “Awfully cavalier with giving up your soul. For most deals, that’s a bit of a… hard sell.”</p><p>Patton waved his hand dismissively. “If that’s the price you want, then I can work with it. It’d be worth it.” He tucked the book under his arm, grabbing his mug and slice of cake. “Do you want to continue this in my living room? It’s small, but we can sit on the couch instead of standing around?”</p><p>“Oh I would absolutely love too,” Deceit said. “Let me just follow you over there.”</p><p>“Okay!” Patton said brightly. He turned and walking into the living room, setting his mug and cake on the coffee table. He waited for a second, but Deceit didn’t follow. Patton frowned, poking his head back into the kitchen. “Hey, didn’t you say you were coming?”</p><p>Deceit, still standing within the circle of dirt, seemed unimpressed. “I was speaking sarcastically,” he said, motioning to the floor. “I can’t leave this circle until the deal is completed. Did your little book not mention that crucial detail?”</p><p>Patton’s cheeks burned pink. “Well, it probably did, but I just kinda skimmed the important bits! To be honest I didn’t expect to get this far anyway. I don’t really know anyone with demon summoning experience!”</p><p>Deceit glanced at the plate of cake in his hand, then at cartoon stickers on the fridge, then back at Patton himself. “Really?” he drawled “I never would have guessed, you do seem like such an expert on the matter.”</p><p>Patton pouted, crossing his arms. “Well you’ve probably never summoned a demon either mister pointy horns! Unless, uh, maybe that’s how demon’s talk to each other? Maybe. That’s not the point!” He paused, unsure of what exactly the point was. Maybe he really should have planned out this discussion a bit more than just summoning a demon and giving him cake and coffee.</p><p>“Now, I do love spending all day in urban nowhere, but I have a dentist’s appointment at five,” Deceit drawled, using his fork to cut his cake slice into bite-sized pieces. “You don’t want beauty, power, fame and wealth. Generally those are the ones mortals come to my sort for,” he said. “Is it immortality? It’s immortality isn’t it. We don’t do that anymore, Hell-wide policy. When their souls get collected their body still doesn’t die and honestly? It’s icky.”</p><p>“It’s not immortality!” Patton insisted. “Actually it’s… a people problem.”</p><p>Deceit nodded sagely, stabbing his fork into a bite of cake. “Ahhh, I see what you’re getting at. You want me to kill someone. Or make them fall in love with you. Or both, the night’s still young.”</p><p>“No!” Patton shouted, flustered at even the thought of getting someone killed. “That’d be awful, I’d never do that. I don’t want you hurting people or anything. I just… I want friends.”</p><p>Deceit’s eyebrows drew together, deep in thought. “Political friends?” he asked.</p><p>Patton shook his head. “No! Not like, big important political friends, or magic friends or anything. I already said I don’t care about power. I just want people who like me! People I can watch movies with and hang out with.”</p><p>Deceit began pacing the edge of the rather small summoning circle. “I could brainwash this entire city into wanting to be your closest friend,” he said.</p><p>Patton crossed his arms. “No brainwashing! I want real friends, the real way!”</p><p>“You’re kidding me, right?” Deceit said, rubbing his eyes. “Just go talk to other humans. Why in all the Hells would you summon a demon to help you make friends? What about my job description made you think I’d be any help?”</p><p>Patton puffed out his cheeks. “Well, you are kinda suave and cool! I dunno if it’s a demon thing or just you, but you could teach me that! Or just help me stay calm, so I don’t get nervous!”</p><p>“You are literally giving a demon your soul,” Deceit snapped. “At the end of the deal, your soul belongs to me. You’re going to be trapped in the underworld for eternity. And you’re agreeing to that so you can ‘hang out’ with some people?”</p><p>A moment of silent passed. Patton cleared his throat. “Okay well maybe it’s not the best way but I already tried a bunch of other stuff and this was the last thing I came up with.”</p><p>Deceit rolled his eyes, removing the silken glove from his right hand. “Fine. I don’t know why I’m trying to talk you out of it anyway. This is all the better for me. I help you find friends, and once you’ve had, say, five months being rather close, I claim your soul. Are you happy with that?”</p><p>Patton shrugged, offering his own freckly hand. “Sure! So long as they like me and I like them!” he said.</p><p>Unlike Patton, Deceit did, for a moment, hesitate. But then they joined hands and the pact was sealed. Patton winced, his palm burning beneath Deceit’s touch. When he pulled away, there was a faint white burn on his hand, a sigil in the shape of a two-headed snake.</p><p>“Now, I trust you did read the entirety of that book, including what happens after the pact is formed?” Deceit said, though his tone shared none of the certainty of his words.</p><p>Patton’s face burned with embarrassment. “Uh. You hang around and help me?” he said unhelpfully.</p><p>Deceit sighed, pulling the glove back over his hand. “More or less. If I am further that thirty feet away from you, I will be sent back to the underworld until you call on me again. You call on me by pressing my sigil and saying my name,” he said, motioning to the burn on Patton’s hand. “Whilst in public I can take a less… conspicuous form, in order to aid you without drawing unwanted attention. I cannot directly harm you or any other human while under this pact… though there’s nothing keeping me from more clever means of causing trouble.”</p><p>“Please don’t,” Patton said awkwardly.</p><p>Deceit flickered his long snake-like tongue at Patton, pouting. “Oh boo, don’t be a buzzkill. You’re the one who summoned a demon.”</p><p>Well, he wasn’t wrong about that.</p><p>But Patton wasn’t entirely clueless. He knew that trading his life for a few friends was a heavy price. He knew it was probably stupid, he knew Thomas would be so upset if he found out. He knew.</p><p>He had his reasons.</p><p>Patton was about to ask a few more questions about their new arrangements when a small buzz went off on his phone. He glanced at it, and his heart stuttered.</p><p>“Oh shoot! I didn’t realize it was Saturday!” he said, scrambling to throw plastic wrap over the cake and shove the demon-summoning book under his arm. “I’m so sorry!”</p><p>Deceit raised an eyebrow, watching Patton rush around the kitchen. “What exactly has you so worked up?”</p><p>“I forgot this book’s overdue at the library!” Patton said, grabbing his shoes and awkwardly trying to wiggle them on with his hands full. “I keep turning stuff in late, I don’t want the librarians to be mad at me!”<br/>
“Is it really that time-sensitive?” Deceit said. “You can’t wait an hour?”</p><p>Patton shook his head. “If I wait I’ll forget, I always do! I’m so sorry, you can come with me! We can start on the whole friends thing!” Once both shoes were on, he sprinted to the apartment door. He glanced back, but Deceit wasn’t following. Was his sneaky form completely invisible?</p><p>“Come back here and let me out of the goddamn summoning circle, you unprofessional amateur!”</p><p>Oops.</p><p>Patton sprinted back to the kitchen, blowing out a few candles and kicking some of the salt circle aside. “Okay come on, there’s no time to lose!” he said, and immediately took off to the door again.</p><p>“It’s an overdue book, truly, the highest priority,” Deceit said, putting a hand over the door before Patton could unlock it. “Don’t go out yet. If I am going to accompany you, we can’t just walk out with me looking like… this,” he said, gesturing to his own face. “Hold out your hand.”</p><p>Patton paused, then held out his free hand, palm facing up. He shot Deceit a quizzical look, not entirely sure how this helped.</p><p>The demon’s bones began to shift beneath his skin, his eyes flashing and his form changed. It was oddly mesmerizing, but Patton decided it was also kind of gross to watch. And then—</p><p>Plop! A yellow corn snake appeared where Deceit had been, and dropped into Patton’s open hand.</p><p>Patton squealed in delight, his library rush briefly forgotten. “Oh my goodness! You’re so cute!” he cooed, gently stroking the tiny snake’s head with his finger. “Look at your little snake snoot!”</p><p>He could hear Deceit’s voice, though it sounded faint and muffled, like it was coming from inside his own skull. “Do continue patronizing me, certainly being non-venomous means I would never bite,” the demon grumbled. The little corn snake form of Deceit slowly slithered up his arm, settling in a pocket in the cardigan around his shoulders. “In here, I will be unseen. No one will know you are not alone.”</p><p>Not alone. The thought gave Patton a moment of pause, his usual smile gone for a brief moment. He shook his head, and faked a smile—fake it ’til you feel it. “C’mon Dee, let’s go make some friends.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Patton and his demon return an overdue book to the library.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Patton burst through the front door of the city library, sprinting to the front desk with sweat on his cheeks and the book clutched to his chest. “I’m so sorry!” he said, slamming the book down and digging through his pockets for money to cover the late fee. “I totally forgot it was overdue, I got really busy—“</p><p>“Shush. You are disturbing the other readers,” the librarian interrupted. The librarian was a man with dark hair, a sharp jawline, and a carefully pressed shirt. He wore a blue striped tie with several pins and buttons promoting library programs, each tacked on the tie in a tidy geometric stack. On the breast of his shirt was a small name tag with the name “Logan Crofters” written in a perfectly neat handwriting.</p><p>Logan checked the computer in front of him and opened the book to scan it in. He paused, narrowing his eyes. “What is this?”</p><p>“It’s the book I borrowed,” Patton said, a bit confused. “I picked it up here a month ago? It’s checked out under the name Patton Sa—“</p><p>“I know it’s a book,” Logan cut in. “Third edition, ‘An Annotated Look at Malleus Maleficarum and Ancient Demonology.’ Originally by Heinrich Kramer, this is a modern examination of the texts and the existence of the supernatural.” He leaned forwards, looming over Patton. He pointed at the book, almost accusingly. “What I was asking about if what appears to be a series of burns at the edge of the pages.”</p><p>Oh, right. The book did get a little on fire when he’d summoned Deceit.</p><p>Patton’s hand instinctively reached up to touch the pocket where Deceit was coiled and hiding. “Oh! Uh. I thought it was a… cookbook. And I left it near the stove! On accident, I’m not a book vandal. I just get, uh, really fired up about reading! Haha. Yeah.”</p><p>‘You really are terrible at this,’ Dee’s voice observed from the back of Patton’s head. ‘When was the last time you talked to another human, clown college?”</p><p>“Shh!” Patton whispered at his pocket.</p><p>Logan raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. “Based on a cursory glance, there seems to be no serious damage to the contents of the book. Trimming the damaged paper may be reasonably done, so be grateful your clumsiness did not destroy this book,” he said, resting his hand gently on the book cover. “There will be an additional fine for damages, of course. If this proves to be a pattern, I will speak to the director about prohibiting you from checking out any further books.”</p><p>“Right,” Patton said sheepishly, grabbing his wallet. “I really am sorry.”</p><p>‘This is ridiculous. Are you even trying to befriend him?’ Deceit scoffed.</p><p>Patton’s face burned with embarrassment. “Oh! Sorry, my phone is ringing—I really have to take this, give me a minute,” he said to Logan. Before Logan could point out there was no ringtone, Patton hurried a few feet away, pressing his phone to his ear.</p><p>“Dee, you’re making it really hard to focus!” he said in an anxious half-whisper. “Besides, we’re not here because of the pact. We’re here to return my library book. Not everyone can be friends, and I really don’t think he likes me. We can find people to be friends with after.”</p><p>The tip of Deceit’s snout poked out just above Patton’s pocket, flickering his tongue. ‘Sounds like someone’s making excuses if you ask me,’ he hissed.</p><p>“It’s not that easy,” Patton said firmly.</p><p>‘Oh please,’ Deceit said. ‘Even I could do it. If a monster from Hell can then you absolutely have no excuse.’</p><p>Patton sighed. “Okay, okay, I’ll try! But if he gets more annoyed than he already is I’m stopping and we can find someone else, okay?” He pressed a finger to Deceit’s snout, gently pushing the yellow snake back down into hiding.</p><p>Putting the phone in his pocket, Patton walked back to the library desk, drumming on it with a sheepish smile. “Hey! Sorry about that. My job called me. It was about working things and stuff,” he said. “So, um, how much was that fine again?”</p><p>“Fifteen dollars,” Logan said.</p><p>‘The fine is not going to win his affection,’ Deceit said. ‘Target his weaknesses. Find that which makes him vulnerable and exploit it.’</p><p>As Patton fumbled to open his wallet, he started going red in the face. “So, kiddo! This is a pretty nifty job you’ve got! You must really like books, huh.”</p><p>There was no visible change in Logan’s expression, but he did lift his head slightly. “It is an acceptable career, yes. Though I am hardly a ‘kiddo.’”</p><p>Okay so that wasn’t exactly a lot to continue the conversation with. “Sorry about that ki—um, Logan! You sure got a lot of books piled up here!” Patton said, pointing to a tall stack of books on the desk, precariously balanced. “Been having a lot of returns today?”</p><p>“No,” Logan said, adjusting his glasses. “That is my personal reading material for when there is downtime on the job.”</p><p>“Really?” Patton picked up the first book, squinting at the title. “On the Nature of String Theory and Associated Repercussions. Boy, that’s a mouthful! How long does it take you to read this stuff?”</p><p>For the first time, a small, self-satisfied smile crossed Logan’s face. “That pile is my reading for today. It is a slow time of week, and due to my words-per-minute being considerably above average, I need a substantial amount of material.”</p><p>“That’s so cool!” Patton said eagerly, placing his fifteen dollars on the desk. “Oh wow, you must know everything about everything! Oh, did you ever read the uh… The Annotated Mal—the uh… the book I was borrowing?” </p><p>Logan checked the handful of bills and began methodically sorting them away. “‘An Annotated Look at Malleus Maleficarum and Ancient Demonology’. Yes, I have. A rather odd, but fascinating book. While the original was a historical treatise by the Catholics on the need to exterminate witches, this annotated edition spends far more time comparing the outdated claims to knowledge on the practices of historical witches. It is a fascinating look into a rather brutal conflict between contrary systems of faith.”</p><p>“Did you read the part about the demons? The drawings in that part were so spooky!” Patton said eagerly.</p><p>Logan nodded, sliding the desk drawer shut and turning his attention back to Patton. “I did. There is no reason for you to be put off by the book, though. Although fascinating, the concept of Hell and demons is scientifically improbable.”</p><p>‘You’re scientifically improbable,’ Deceit hissed.</p><p>“Oh, well, you never know!” Patton said.</p><p>Logan tilted his head to the side. “Ah, my mistake. Sometimes I forget to be more delicate with matters that have religious ties. I have been told I can be rather blunt and rude. Have I offended you?”</p><p>“No, no!” Patton said, waving his arms in front of himself. “Uh, I just think anything could be out there! Like space, who knows whats in space!”</p><p>Logan crossed his arms over the desk, lost in thought. “Space demons? I mean—no. Although there are many unknowns, stories of demons depend on their interactions with human beings. There should be a high concentration of reports on demonic sightings, or some measurable evidence. Our knowledge of demons is based purely off of folktales and, if one partakes in it, religious belief. Personally, I find the odds infinitesimal.”</p><p>‘His head is infinitesimal.’</p><p>“Please be nice,” Patton pleaded.</p><p>Logan raised his eyebrows curiously. “Ah, I’m sorry, did I say something rude after all? I by no means am trying to offend, only to have a simple debate.”</p><p>“No! You didn’t, uh, hmm.” Patton bit his lip, feeling a bit off balance as he tried to make up an excuse. “I mean, if demons do exist, imagine how they would feel! If your whole thing is stealing souls and having scary horns and wings, people would probably try to attack you! So they’d probably hide any time they were around people, like disguises. If you were a demon, wouldn’t you hide too?”</p><p>Logan shook his head. “Absolutely not. I would immediately seek out a component scientist and turn myself over for study,” he said, sounding surprisingly enthused. “I would gladly do anything for the sake of further scientific advancement and the collective knowledge of humankind. It is what I live for.”</p><p>‘Well that’s just perfectly ordinary.’</p><p>“Hey, uh, Logan!” Patton said, leaning on the desk. “You seem really smart and cool and I wanna hang out with you and stuff! Would you, uh, wanna go to a movie some time?”</p><p>Logan looked at Patton quizzically. “Truth be told I do not have many close acquaintances here. I am going to have to turn you down.”</p><p>Patton wilted. “Oh. That’s okay,” he said, forcing a smile, trying to stay cheerful. “No hard feelings.”</p><p>He put a hand over his pocket, and the feeling of Deceit’s coils gave him some small comfort. ‘Whatever, that stuck-up nerd probably isn’t good enough for you anyway. Don’t worry about him. The deal was that we find friends that you like and they like you. If he’s going to be an asshole, then we find someone else.”</p><p>“Thank you,” Patton said softly, bowing his head as he turned to leave.</p><p>Logan pulled out his phone, tapping his chin. “I am available this Saturday. Is that reasonable for you?”</p><p>Patton stopped in his tracks. “Wait, wait. What?”</p><p>Logan lowered his phone, tilting his head to the side. “Saturday. I was under the impression that you wanted to meet up and ‘hang out.’ Is that not a good time for you?”</p><p>“But you said you were going to turn me down?” Patton said, bunching his eyebrows up. “I don’t get it. Is this a prank?”</p><p>“I turned you down for a movie. Most are silly fictional stories and I find them utterly uninteresting. I would be willing to go for a coffee, or perhaps to visit a museum if you find that agreeable. As I said, I do not currently have many close acquaintances.”</p><p>‘How is this man worse at social cues than you are?’ Deceit said in disbelief.</p><p>Patton lit up, holding his hands close to his chest and resisting the urge to bounce up and down. He had a friend! Or at least, a potential friend. He hadn’t hung out with anyone for fun since high school. “That sounds great! The natural history museum has a lot of cool interactive exhibits with fun videos and little models of stuff,” he said eagerly. “And they have a cafe, so we could do coffee too!”</p><p>“That sounds perfectly serviceable,” Logan said, typing on his phone. “We can meet at the museum. I keep a rather strict schedule, so I’d like to know what times to put in my calendar.”</p><p>“Does three work for you?” Patton said eagerly.</p><p>Logan nodded, showing Patton the calendar open on his phone. “I’m available then. You are an incredibly odd man, but I believe this will be a mutually enjoyable ‘chill sesh.’ Did I say that correctly?”</p><p>“I think so,” Patton said.</p><p>‘Ah. So you’re both idiots,’ Deceit said drily. ‘Congratulations Patton, you deserve each other.’</p><p>“I’ll be looking forward to it. For now though, I must ask that you leave me be. I am still on working hours, and I’m expecting a phone call about a shipment of new children’s books.” Logan grabbed a sticky note and a pen, scribbling down his name and phone number. “Should any issues come up regarding our weekend meeting, you may contact me.”</p><p>“Thanks Logan!” Patton said brightly, taking the sticky note and holding it tightly. “I can’t wait, see you this weekend!” He turned and walked back out the library doors, resisting the urge to skip down the steps. The city felt particularly sunny and warm today, and he couldn’t help humming a cheery nonsense tune. There was still the chance things might not work out and he and Logan wouldn’t be friends after all, but Patton tried not to think about that.</p><p>He turned down a small empty side-street, scooping Deceit out of his pocket. “Dee, did you hear that? Oh man! I don’t remember making friends being so scary!” he said eagerly. “We’re gonna hang out! Can you believe it?”</p><p>In a ripple of scales and a shimmer of light, the corn snake slipped from his palm, taking the form of Deceit. For a brief moment his hand was resting over Patton’s, though he quickly pulled it away.</p><p>“Honestly I’m shocked that didn’t end with the library in flames,” Deceit mused. He looked slightly different from before—his suit was gone in favor of a more business-casual attire and his horns had vanished beneath the dark curls of his hair. In the sunlight, there seemed to be ripples of white across his golden scales. “It certainly could have gone worse. Though it could have gone better too.”</p><p>Patton laughed, grinning brightly. “I’m gonna hang out with him, like friends do! That’s pretty great in my book.” He paused, the concern melting back in. How was he going to win over someone as smart and cool as Logan? “You’ll come with to the museum, right? I don’t want to do anything wrong and make him change his mind!”</p><p>Deceit shrugged, tilting back his hat. “If that’s what it takes to fulfill your pact I can’t really say no, can I now?”</p><p>“So you’ll come?” Patton asked hopefully.</p><p>Deceit leaned against the building wall and smirked. “I suppose I will, yes.”</p><p>Patton smiled, reaching out and taking Deceit’s hand, holding it between both of his. “Great! I was really scared, but this was a lot of fun! Oh!” He pulled back, glancing at his phone. “It’s getting late, I should probably get home so I can start making dinner. Are you going home for the night?”</p><p>Deceit paused, his expression shifting into something Patton couldn’t quite read. “If you have no more need of my services for the day, yes, I can go back to hell,” he said, his voice clipped and cold.</p><p>“Well, I don’t have anything else I need your help with, but if you want you can join me for dinner? I’m going to make a spaghetti casserole!”</p><p>Deceit narrowed his eyes. “If this is some attempt to escape the deal by poisoning me, I can guarantee you will suffer for it.”</p><p>“No, no!” Patton said, clearly horrified by the idea. “Why would I do that? You’re helping me, just like I wanted!” He paused, his enthusiasm slipping a bit. “I’m sorry. You don’t have to stay for dinner, I just thought it might be nice.”</p><p>Deceit stood up, tilting his hat down. “You truly are a bizarre human being,” he muttered. “I will follow you home, and while you eat, we will discuss strategies to fulfill the contract. I will not eat, and I will not stay longer than necessary. Is this clear?”</p><p>Patton nodded, feeling as though maybe he’d touched on a nerve. It was tempting to ask, and while he had a habit of being a busybody, he figured it wasn’t the smartest idea to bug a demon for personal details. “Your loss,” he said, smiling to try and ease the tension. “I make a mean casserole!” He turned and started walking down the sidewalk, back towards his department.</p><p>Deceit followed behind him, keeping his head down so passersby wouldn’t notice the scales marking his cheek. He glanced up now and then, eyes on Patton’s back. There was a strange feeling, one that the demon could not quite place. It was a warmth—not the fire of anger or the heat of jealousy—it was like a gentle ray of sunlight. He pushed the feeling down, gritting his teeth. Thinking too much on the feeling would distract him from his purpose. He was here to claim a soul for damnation, not to worry over the gentle burning in his chest.</p><p>He would not let this human get under his skin so easily.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Idk if I'll write more since I'm not great at finishing multi-chapter fics, but I do have more ideas, so we'll see!<br/>Constructive criticism and writing advice is always super appreciated :3!</p><p>Follow me on Tumblr for more fics and art! https://prodigal-sunlight.tumblr.com/</p></blockquote></div></div>
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